After four rallies, IFA president says ‘livelihoods are on the line’
FOLLOWING Friday’s four regional rallies around the country, IFA President Tim Cullinan said it should be clear to the Government that anger is building among farmers on the ground. He said a series of issues for the sector have now placed farmers’ livelihoods on the line. “The clear message from the thousands who turned out on Friday is that farmers are frustrated and angry at the way they are being treated by our Government,” he said.
“Farmers won’t accept being offered up as a sacrificial lamb to the Green Party to keep the Government in office,” he said.
“Farmers feel that our Government wants to regulate them out of business. Every policy, including those on climate action, CAP and the Nitrates Action Plan, is designed to reduce production,” he said. “Farm families are being subjected to policies driven by regulation, restriction and reduction without any heed to its impact on farm family income and overall economic impact. Farmers are aware of climate action and are willing to play their part,” he said.
“Farmers cannot understand why our Government flatly refuse to sit down with their elected leaders to make a plan for the sector that will allay their concerns and give them confidence that there is a long-term future for farming. If there’s a forum for employers and unions on the future of the economy, there’s no reason why there cannot be one for farming,” he said.
He said in the weeks and months ahead that Irish farming faces one of its biggest challenges. The recently-passed Climate Action Bill means Ireland has to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 51%. This leaves the Government with one of the biggest policy challenges in the history of the State.
“They selected this target without any consideration of the consequences for the economy, or for Irish farming.
“Shortly, the Government will publish carbon budgets, and Sectoral Emissions Ceilings. This will include a legally-binding emissions ceiling for Irish agriculture. “There is no such thing as a ‘national herd’. We have over 100,000 cattle herds in this country, with an average of fewer than 70 animals. These cattle are owned by farmers, not the State. The livelihoods of thousands of farmers and their families depend on these herds. We cannot place a new quota on these farmers,” he said in a recent statement. “In the coming weeks, our Minister will also finalise his plan for Ireland’s next CAP programme for 2023-27. Based on the current proposals, 25% will be sliced off every farmer’s Basic Payment to fund Eco Schemes.
“Many farmers will not be able to qualify. Those who do, will suffer significant compliance costs. As a result, some of our most productive farmers will see their incomes devastated. These Eco Schemes are cuts, not ‘rewards for environmental actions’ as some in Government are describing them.
“The EU rules allow our own Government to reduce the percentage cut for Eco Schemes below 25%. The Minister must pursue this and the schemes must be designed in a way that allows our most productive farmers to get a larger Eco Scheme payment.”
He said the Government is also using the terms and conditions of the proposed schemes under Pillar II of the CAP to restrict production, including an attempted cap on suckler cow numbers. “This is unacceptable,” he said
“It is not just in CAP we are facing cuts to incomes. As it stands, the proposed Nitrates Action Plan will cost farmers millions in compliance costs.
“One area in which we had success was forcing the Government to amend the Climate Bill in the Seanad to take account of the carbon farms remove from the environment. “However, Minister Ryan now wants to move the goalposts on how removals will be counted by using a ‘gross-net’ measure rather than ‘net-net’. This is sleight-of-hand and bad faith by Minister Ryan. Minister McConalogue needs to call him out on this.
“Last week we heard the Minister for Agriculture claim that the State owns carbon credits generated by forestry. Carbon credits are owned by farmers. The State will not steal our carbon credits.”
The IFA President described the forestry licensing system as a complete mess. “We have to apply for licences for planting, forest roads, thinning and harvesting. Planting and harvesting have ground to a halt and we are now importing timber
INVESTIGATIONS into the cause of a farm shed fire which killed 16,000 chickens on Sunday near Belcoo are ongoing. A spokesperson from Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service said: “NIFRS was called to an incident at Marble Arch Road, Belcoo, on Sunday at 7.26am. and missing all our forestry targets. The carbon tax on diesel is due to be increased again in next week’s Budget, but farmers have no alternative to diesel. The Government has done nothing to support farm scale renewables, despite promises to do so. As a result, our uptake of farm renewables is one of the lowest in the EU.
“They banned peat harvesting without considering the consequences for horticulture. We are now importing peat which is counter-productive from a climate perspective.
Horticulture, along with our pig and dairy sectors, are also suffering serious labour shortages, but it is taking forever to get work permits. “Meanwhile, the retail sector is putting horticulture producers out of business. Where is the promised Food Ombudsman?
“Huge Government decisions are also due on the allocation of carbon tax revenue and the Brexit Adjustment Reserve.”
IFA President Cullinan said the whole Government approach is “to preach at farmers”. The Government, he said, needs to sit around the table with farmers and agree a plan at farm level for the next five to 10 years.
“If they continue on their current trajectory, they will decimate Irish farming and rural Ireland.
“This will deliver no benefit to the environment as food production will simply move to other countries that have a larger climate footprint than Ireland.
“We have tried to work with the Government on these issues, but all we get is ‘stakeholder consultation’. We need more than that. Our livelihoods are on the line,” he said.
A water tanker and appliances from Belleek, Enniskillen and Irvinestown stations attended the scene. Firefighters using breathing apparatus and water jets worked in difficult conditions to bring the large shed fire under control by 3.50pm. Investigation into the cause is ongoing.”
LEFT: Francie Meehan, Pádraig Mulligan, TD Marian Harkin and Sligo IFA chairperson Kathleen Henry at the rally at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine offices in Roscommon.